News & Events

GLOBETRONICS Technology Bhd, a chipmaker, is beefing up research in its own products by hiring retired Japanese engineers.

The company's chief operating officer Heng Huck Lee yesterday said efforts are also in place to expand its quartz crystal business which has been set up recently in Kuala Lumpur.

"The bulk of our RM20 million capital expenditure earmarked for this year will go towards expanding the new operations," he told reporters in Penang after the company's annual shareholders' meeting.

Over and above this allocation, the company has set aside RM30 million for its research from 2006 to 2009.

"We have spent RM6 million last year in developing a special form of substrate that has super performance in terms of thermal, electrical and mechanical applications, along with an engine module for the lighting industry," Heng said.

Globetronics has filed a patent for the thermal substrate, Heng said.

The product serves as a component for the solid state lighting industry, which is being touted as the next wave of lighting source where no filaments are used.

"Plan to expand our R&D centre includes adding more resources and launching new products under the Globetronics flagship, which will become a very important foundation for our next stage of growth," he added.

Heng also said that Globetronics was beginning to hook-up with parties in Japan and Europe to have its light engine incorporated into those companies' products.

"To complement our R&D needs, we are getting a couple of retired R&D engineers from Japan to come on board and work with us," he added.

On whether Globetronics' roap map included mergers and acquisitions, Heng said the option was always there.

"However, the criterion we are seeking is that the other party must bring value-addedness to our operations by being synergistic and complementary in our goal of emerging a global partner of choice," he said.

For its 2006 financial year ending December 31, Globetronics recorded a 28 per cent growth in net profit to RM30.5 million while its revenue grew by one per cent to RM328 million.